Crag Guide for Kitten Wall Area

A Crag Guide gives an extensive view of all sub areas and climbs at a point in the index. It shows a snapshot of the index heirachy, up to 300 climbs (or areas) on a single web page. It shows selected comments climbers have made on a recently submitted ascent.

At a minor crag level this should be suitable for printing and taking with you on a climbing trip as an adjunct to your guidebook.

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Rock climbing is extremely dangerous and can result in serious injury or death. Users acting on any information directly or indirectly available from this site do so at their own risk.

This guide is compiled from a community of users and is presented without verification that the information is accurate or complete. By using this guide you acknowledge that the material described in this document is extremely dangerous, and that the content may be misleading or wrong. In particular there may be misdescriptions of routes, incorrectly drawn topo lines, incorrect difficulty ratings or incorrect or missing protection ratings.

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1.
Kitten Wall Area
76 routes
in Crag

Bird Nesting September-December
Raptors usually nest on the following climbs in Spring : Cassandra
Eurydice, Harlequin Cracks, Revelations.
Nesting usually finishes mid-December. There may or may not be signs in place at these times.
Please keep 50m clear of these climbs if there appears to be nesting activity.

Mount Arapiles is first and foremost a trad climbing area. The few sport climbs tend to be in the higher grades where no natural pro is available.

Bolting, particularly retro-bolting, is discouraged and should only be undertaken after extensive consultation with the local climbers, first ascensionists, etc. Inappropriately placed bolts have been chopped.

Do not chip the rock.

Look after the park.

Stick to the paths.

Don't disturb the wildlife.

Routes near peregrine falcon nesting sites are closed in the spring.

Minimise the impact of your camping (fuel stoves not fires, take your rubbish with you, etc).

A fingery start then good climbing is initially protected by not-the-best cam placement in the world. The bolt needs replacing. A better variant at 23 is to start up Claw and join the traverse L at about 4m.

Good climbing on spaced holds up the wall L of Siamese Crack. You can solo the crux (first 6m) or put side runners in SC. Move L at 6m to flake on Puss in Boots, then back R and straight up through roof to chains.

The right-hand of the 3 prominent crack-lines starts with a character-building thrutch. Most people will opt to do the Right-Hand Variant or 'Cheshire Cat' instead but it could be worth testing your technique on this.

The climb originally started up the easy, thin diagonal crack 1 metre right of Manx, now Manx RHV, but it is now done via the initial wall of 'Hard Nipples', which makes the climb more consistent. The climb originally went free up the diagonal crack and then aided up to and through the roof.

More like hard forearms. Not a good idea to fall off the initial wall from a height. Its easy to scramble in from the right to place gear and toprope the first 4m if you value your ankles. DRB on ledge at top.

In a similar style to 'Hendrix', it can be amusing to watch pumped leaders lose form and begin to flail for the top. You can go straight up - off a shallow midsize cam, or diagonally left to finish as for Hendrix (better and better protected).

A pretty exciting wall climb which is bolt protected where it matters, but still requires a good head to deal with the small wire protection and unconventional moves prior to it. 1st pitch ends at a rap chain, but the 2nd pitch shouldn't be ignored.

Start: Start at the left-facing flake corner about halfway along the wall (Start of Celluloid Heroes).

27m (20) Climb crack or left wall for 4 metres and then move onto the right wall. Continue onwards with fiddly protection then bolts leading to roof. Move right beneath roof to vertical step and up to stance at higher roof.

27m (17) Traverse left under roof to tricky move and lip then more easily up.

Climb 'Odd Spots' for 5metres . Place a high runner in Strangers Eliminate then reverse a move and make a rising traverse rightwards, crossing 'Bad Cheques' then joining 'Tjuringa' at its midway flake. At the flake step down a move and continue traversing right past to 2 bolts to the undercling feature, before heading straight up to join 'Tjuringa' at its first belay. This last section is bold 21 in its own right.

Double ropes are essential. Note: 50m ropes may not be long enough to lower the climber back to the ground therefore use double 60m ropes. HB 1, 'Camelot' 1, BD Hexentric 1 are essential gear.

Technical climbing on perfect rock.
Start 5m left of Bad Cheques, just right of 'My Soul To Keep'. Up past three bolts to join Stranger's Eliminate at it's bolt.
Let me know what you think of the grade and stars. I'm bad at grading.

Well named. An unprotected start (crux) above an awful landing (the block) leads to the first gear in a good horizontal (cam). Fairly well protected and great climbing after that leads to the chain on Stranger's. It is possible to place a wire in a 2-finger pocket at the start, but it is debatable protection to say the least. If you do it this way, then a wired hex is recommended. Graded to take into account the seriousness.

One of the most outstanding routes at 'Arapiles'. The two pitches provide two very different beasts. Pitch 1 is a runout slab ending at the roof. Pitch 2 is the roof itself, which involves powerful climbing on good holds, but some poor gear. The piton should be treated with respect! Both pitches graded to take into account seriousness.

35m (25) Up the face then left and up flakes. Step right and run it out to roof (small cam in pocket). Traverse 6 metres right to rap anchor.

25m (25) Jug out roof past old peg and around lip. Up wall veering right to flake then traverse steeply back left to belay.

One of the most significant additions to this wall in 25 years. Originally equipped back in the dark ages. Very hard wall climbing protected by a mix of trad, then bolts - but still very exciting. Starts as for 'High Mum' then when level with the large flakeline (below the notch), drop down to the left and gain 'Tjuringa Wall' proper via a heinious crux sequence past a bolt. Trend up and leftwards to the undercut horizontal and finish as for 'My Soul to Keep'.

It's hard to say which is less repeated - 'Tjuringa', 'Akakage', or this. Once you see the line, you'll know why. A massive traversing affair that starts as for 'Common Knowledge' 2nd pitch, but then keeps heading left (under Akakage) to a (hard) crux lip encounter (very old bolt) and an outrageous headwall finish.

This is now considered a variant first pitch to 'Common Knowledge' but it originally had a hard (grade 25), second pitch which joined 'Common Knowledge' higher up. Tha hard section of that pitch is now the start of 'Lats Have Feelings Too'. Varied climbing up to the notch, then follow the right trending overlap and surmount it - then straight up to CK belay.

A great 2 pitch outing, though doing the entire route in one pitch is recommended. The dead tree has long since disappeared, so now you have to climb the wall to get off the ground! Double bolts now reside over the top, just below the summit block on its right side.

Start: Start just right of Hi Mum! at bolt-protected wall.

25m (23) Up wall past bolt and through right-leading line to ledge. Traverse left into right-hand flake and follow this until able to climb wall to semi-hanging belay below roof. Make sure the anchor can withstand an upwards force!

25m (24) Up right-curving flake, back left to small overlap. Up headwall a few moves then traverse right, demanding with plenty of exposure, for a few metres then go up to anchor (30 metre rappel)

Like its neighbours, a very rarely repeated route that drives straight through the belay of 'Common Knowledge'. 'Fantastic' position and great rock, but a ridiculously hard fingery crux that has baffled quite a few aspiring suitors. Two bolts protect the business.

A contrasting second pitch with good rock and protection. From the recess Step up right onto stance. up and left via incuts and slots surmounting the overlap on its left. Left past bolt then directly up. At top step left to anchors on Common Knowledge